reaching more than ierran · 2015-11-23 · volume 9 • number 3 fall 2003 massachusettsierran...

Volume 9 • Number 3 Fall 2003

�IERRANM A S S A C H U S E T T S�IERRAN

www.sierraclubmass.org

I N S I D E :

Explore, enjoy and protect the planet

Reaching More Than 26,000 Sierra Club Members

in Massachusetts

4 The World in a Grain of SandAlexandra Dohan explores ourfragile coastline and tells us howone Cape Cod community plans torestore its beaches and dunes.

6 Profit Before ParksA private developer succeeds in a decade-long bid to clear-cut alarge swath of Wachusett’s majestic forests for new ski trails.

7 Greylock Glen, RevisitedTwo years after Swift called off adevelopment project at GreylockGlen, the fate of one ofMassachusetts’s most beautifulareas remains up in the air.

8 Still Going StrongThe Sierra Club keeps the pressureon Ford to give consumers whatthey want: cars that go farther on less gas.

9 The Gutting of theEndangered Species Act and the Marine MammalProtection Act The Bush administration takes aswipe at environmental safeguardsin the name of military readiness.

11 The Myth of the Peaceful,Noble SavageSimpler societies live in harmonywith nature, right? Wrong! Book review by Diana Muir

14 Greater Boston Group News

15 Chapter and Group Meetings

2 Massachusetts Sierran FALL 2003

Massachusetts Sierra Club

CHAPTER EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2003

Mary Ann Nelson, [email protected]

617-442-0123

David Heimann, Vice [email protected]

Blossom Hoag, [email protected]

Alexandra [email protected]

John [email protected]


Gilbert [email protected]

Elisa [email protected]


CHAPTER STAFF

James McCaffrey, DirectorVaughn Elizabeth Bell, Administrative Assistant

Jeremy Marin, Conservation Organizerwww.sierraclubmass.org

[email protected]

LEADERS LIST

For information on local environmental issues, membership, meetings, outings, and any other Sierra Club events, call or write the group or issue leaders listed below.

Annual dues in the Sierra Club are $39, of which $1 is for a subscription to the Massachusetts Sierran.

GROUP LEADERSCape Cod GroupChris Neill, [email protected]

Greater Boston GroupDavid Margil, [email protected]

Pioneer Valley GroupElisa Campbell, [email protected]

Blackstone Valley GroupWendy Rowland, Acting [email protected]

Essex County GroupJoan Longwell, [email protected]

CHAPTER ISSUE LEADERSConservation ChairGilbert [email protected]

Energy ChairDavid [email protected]

Public Lands & Open Spaces ChairElisa [email protected]

Transportation ChairJohn [email protected]

Population ChairAnita King413-268-9212

REGIONAL CONTACTSMaine Sierra ClubOne Pleasant StreetPortland, ME 04101-3936207-761-5616

New Hampshire Sierra Club#3 Bicentennial SquareConcord, NH 03301603-224-8222

Vermont Sierra Club73 Center StreetRutland, VT 05701802-651-0169

Rhode Island Sierra Club21 Meeting StreetProvidence, RI 02903401-521-4734

Connecticut Sierra Club118 Oak StreetHartford, CT 06106860-525-2500

NEWS BRIEFS

Roberta Tovey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . EditorBarbara Hollingdale . . . . . . . . . . . DesignerAudrey Borus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Copy EditorJean Sideris . . . . . . Announcements Editor

The Massachusetts Sierran is published quarterly: March, June, September, and December.

The deadline for copy is normally eight weeks before publication. The deadline for meetings andannouncements is four weeks before publication.

Please submit all copy to Roberta Tovey at [email protected]. Please submit all announcements and meetings information

to [email protected], unless otherwise stated, are of the author only; positions adopted by the

Sierra Club are identified as such.Circulation of the Massachusetts Sierran is

over 26,000 outdoor-minded, environmentally aware readers.

©2003 Massachusetts Sierra Club

Postmaster:Send all address changes (PS form 3579) to: Sierra Club Membership, 85 Second Street, 2nd FloorSan Francisco, CA 94105

Moving?Send change of address forms to above address.

Prospective advertisers:Contact the Editor to request an advertising rate package.

Periodical Postage (air) at Boston, MA

The Massachusetts Sierran (USPS 059-370) is published quarterly byMassachusetts Chapter Sierra Club 100 Boylston Street, Suite 760Boston, MA 02116

(617) [email protected]

M A S S A C H U S E T T S�IERRANVol. 9 No. 3 • Fall 2003

On the cover: Fenced beach access in Falmouth, Cape Cod (see story page 4). Photograph courtesy Falmouth Chamber of Commerce

Local Leader Receives John Muir Award

On September 20, at a ceremony in San

Francisco, Maine conserva-tion leader Vivian Newmanreceived the John MuirAward—the Sierra Club’shighest and most presti-gious award. Newman hasspent two decades workingto protect the integrity ofour nation’s coasts, watersand wetlands.

The John Muir Awardhonors a distinguishedrecord of leadership innational or international conservation causes that continuesJohn Muir’s preservation and conservation work. In receivingthis distinguished award, Newman joins the ranks of WilliamColby, Ansel Adams, Sigurd F. Olson, William O. Douglas, JacquesCousteau, and David Brower.

Newman is a relative newcomer to Maine, having moved thereless than three years ago. Currently, Newman is chair of theCoastal/Marine Committee and co-chair of the Maine ChapterConservation Committee. Newman also serves as chair of theSierra Club’s National Marine Resources Committee.

Vivian Newman at a recent Maine chapter annual meeting.

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NERCC Releases “Lighting the Way”

On Tuesday, September 9, the NortheastRegional Conservation Committee of the

Sierra Club (NERCC) released a report, “Light-ing the Way,” as part of the proceedings of the28th annual conference of the New EnglandGovernors and Eastern Canadian Premiers.

“Lighting the Way,” which was put togetherby a summer NERCC intern, describes theaccomplishments of the US northeast states and Canadian eastern provinces in energy conser-vation, and lays out what the next steps shouldbe, according to the Sierra Club. The document and conference were especiallytimely after the northeast US power grid failure, which left many without elec-tricity and water for over 24 hours.

Sierra Club members from Canada, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Massachusetts,and Rhode Island participated in the conference. In its most compelling resolu-tion, which passed unanimously, the conference asked the EPA to reconsider itsdecision to relax the New Source Review regulations for power plants.

What you can doTo see the NERCC report, go to http://www.sierraclub.org/rcc/northeast.

FALL 2003 Massachusetts Sierran 3

NEWS BRIEFS

Back to Our Grassroots

The Sierra Club’s strength is itslarge active membership. In

fact, the Sierra Club is the coun-try’s largest grassroots environ-mental organization. This is theresult of years of grassroots activ-ities: knocking on doors and call-ing friends and neighbors.

This fall for the first time theSierra Club will ask members tocontact each other. You mayreceive a knock on your door froma member just like you asking youto sign a post card or take abumper sticker for your car.

Why go to all this trouble?Grassroots organizing is wherethe club’s roots are (pun intend-ed) and it is needed now morethan ever. As the saying goes: ifthe people lead, then the leaderswill follow.

What you can doIf you’d like to be part of one ofthe club’s exciting fall campaigns,please contact Jeremy Marin [email protected]. Or callJeremy at 617-423-5775.

Presiding at the September 9 NERCC pressconference, from left: Mary Ann Nelson,Massachusetts Chapter Chair; Mark Dittrik,Sierra Club of Canada, Atlantic Chapter;David Coon, Conservation Council of NewBrunswick; Daniel LaBlanc, Sierra Club ofCanada, Atlantic Chapter.

Sierra Club EndorsesPro-EnvironmentCandidates inCambridge

The Sierra Club has endorsed sixcandidates in the Cambridge City

Council race: incumbents MarjorieDecker, Henrietta Davis, and BrianMurphy, and challengers Carole Bellew,Craig Kelley, and John Pitkin.

“We reserve our political endorse-ments for candidates we believe wouldbe outstanding advocates for envi-ronmental protection,” said DavidMargil, chair of the Greater BostonGroup of the Massachusetts Sierra Club.“These individuals have shown a deepcommitment to improving the quali-ty of life, protecting the environment,and making Cambridge more pedes-trian-, bike-, and public-transit-friend-ly. They recognize the importance ofthe environment for our lives, thearea’s economy, and the health of ourfamilies.”

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Sierra Club Member GiftsWestern MassachusettsHome Town

Massachusetts Sierra Club Chaptermember John Astore has made

a surprise gift of 37 acres of land tohis home town of West Stockbridge.The beautiful property, the site of anabandoned marble quarry, lies nextto public land owned by the Depart-ment of Fisheries and Wildlife, and isa popular swimming hole for localresidents.

Astore, 94, has served the town forhalf a century in various public offices,and still works as an assessor. His moti-vation? “I want this land to be pre-served,” he told reporter Derek Gentileof the Berkshire Eagle staff. “So muchis being sold and ruined these days,and not enough land is being pre-served.”

Astore says that he has had manyoffers to buy the property, but hewould not sell because he didn’t wantthe land to be developed.

Henry Beston’s Outermost House in Eastham on Cape Cod is gone today.

But sand and sea, though in fact very muchchanged, would appear much the same to acasual observer as when Beston lived there in1928, keeping a journal about the beach, theocean, the wildlife, and the people he foundthere. One of the great mysteries of the coastis how it appears to remain the same while con-stantly changing. Plants, animals, land andwater form a complex web that maintains itselfremarkably well, if there are no major disrup-tions. Even after a violent storm destroys a beachor fills a tidal channel, the original pieces seemto flow seamlessly back together in a new pat-

tern. Whole beaches can be moved in a singlestorm—witness Chatham Light and the “break”or breach of the barrier island that occurred in1987. The whole channel has moved, but thebeach has restructured itself, not for the firstor the last time.

The animals and plants that live here, onthe transition zone between the sea and theland, have adapted to constantly changingwinds, waves and sand. When humans getinvolved, however, we can tip the natural balanceunfavorably, unless we are careful. Concretefoundations, septic systems, jetties, groins, sea-walls, and other human structures affect coastallandforms. A beach or sand dune that is alteredby humans becomes less self-sufficient, less ableto heal itself after natural alterations. Groinsand jetties block the transport of sand alongthe shore, causing beaches to shrink.

Falmouth, Massachusetts, is a case in point.Located on Buzzards Bay and Nantucket Soundat the southwestern end of Cape Cod, Falmouthhas become a popular summer resort area inthe last century. People with homes along theshore have built seawalls, groins, jetties, andother sorts of “sand traps” to prevent their ownbit of sand from washing down the coastline.This works out well for owners, but deprivesthe next beach of sand. When currents pull thesand away from the down-drift side of the groinand deposit it further down the beach, the arti-ficial alteration causes a chain reaction thatultimately starves the beach of sand, andchanges the shoreline ecosystem. Today, suchstructures armor much of the coastline along


The World in a Grain of Sand: Restoring the Cape Cod Shoreline

by Alexandra Dohan

Rocky shoreline in Falmouth, Cape Cod.

View of dunes behind Marconi Beach, Cape Cod.

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Falmouth’s south shore. As a result, the beachessouth of Falmouth like Trunk River and Menau-hant are much more narrow and rocky thanthey were, say, a hundred years ago, and manyof the dunes that lay behind the beaches havedisappeared.

Once you have domesticated an animal, itcan’t survive for long on its own in the wild. Abeach that has been tamed by humans has thesame problem. Rock walls, jetties, beach replen-ishment, filling of wetlands: all of these maykeep nice beaches in front of homes, or keepthe homes from falling into the sea, but what ofthe beach itself, and what of the creatures thatcall the coastal zone home? Concrete, stoneand wood can straitjacket the natural physicalprocesses that build dunes, beaches, barrierislands and tidal flats.

The Falmouth Coastal Resources WorkingGroup (CRWG) has developed an innovativeproposal for the Falmouth shoreline. The goalis not to simply restore the beach, but to restoreboth coastal landforms (beaches, dunes, tidalflats, and other sediment sources), and the nat-ural physical transport processes that producethese landforms. Once coastal processes arerestored, coastal landforms can be sustained.In turn, coastal ecosystems will benefit. Noshort-term, quick fix, the CRWG’s restorationprogram spans the next one hundred years.

Jude Wilber, a coastal scientist in Falmouth,got things going when he opposed funding forcoastal armoring projects at Falmouth TownMeeting in 1999. Instead of paying for moreseawalls and jetties, the town decided to formthe CRWG to study coastal processes and develop recommendations for managing Falmouth’s south shore. The nine members ofthe CRWG were given the task of examiningthe current situation of the coastal zone in Falmouth, and making an educated predictionabout what the coast would look like in thefuture. Dr. Rob Thieler, a coastal geologist withthe US Geological Survey in Woods Hole, chairsthe group.

The CRWG has written a comprehensivereport detailing the present condition of thecoast in Falmouth and how it came to be, andoffering a wide range of recommendations torestore and sustain the coastal zone. The grouprecommends removal of various artificial struc-tures or benign neglect of such structures. Pub-lic outreach is critical, as is ongoing acquisitionand preservation of coastal open space. Accord-

ing to the group’s report, “Falmouth is todayat a crossroads… [I]f the next 100 years of shore-line development is similar to the previous cen-tury, the Falmouth shoreline will be an unde-sirable, even hazardous environment, devoidof all beaches except those artificially main-tained. Many properties, both public and pri-vate, will be vulnerable to storm damage anddestruction. Maintenance costs will rise dra-matically, and the very values that created andhave sustained Falmouth as a desirable coastaltown will be destroyed.”

But “this grim forecast need not representthe town’s future,” the report continues, “Thetown can turn away from the destructive strate-gies of the past and apply the knowledge of theprocesses at work along its shoreline to enhance,rather than degrade,its coastal areas. Itwill take a change inmanagement strate-gies, and it will entailcosts. But the CRWGfeels that those costswill be offset by thereduction of storm damage and maintenancecosts, and the increased value of its shoreline.Falmouth can be a leader; it can develop a newmodel for human interaction with the coast-line. In so doing, Falmouth will not only pointthe way for other communities, but will main-tain its traditional human and natural values.”


continued on page 12

Once coastal processes are restored,

coastal landforms can be sustained.

In turn, coastal ecosystems will benefit.

Falmouth Cove,Cape Cod.

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The developers and the Departmentof Conservation and Recreation claimthe decision strikes a “balance of con-servation and recreational usage.” Butless than 5 percent of the US popula-tion ski. The ski area now controls 22percent of Wachusett Mountain StateReservation—including more than one hundred acres of skiterrain—most of which isoff-limits to non-skierswho do not require thedestruction of 2,000 treesand a mature northernred-oak forest to sustaintheir recreational pursuits.

A process gone wrongAt Wachusett, the developers and thestate were required to submit plans forthe use of Wachusett park. However,the developer’s expansion plan wasapproved before the state was able tosubmit its management plan for thepark! The state ultimately determinedthat “[t]he mountain’s forested slopesare an irreplaceable natural resource”and recommended that the area inquestion “be managed in a ‘hands off’

manner to protect the maturing forestsaround the summit and allow themto regain an old growth character.”

So the decision to proceed with thedeveloper’s expansion plan goesagainst the state’s own directives. Sadly,it also strikes down a tradition inMassachusetts of preserving our nat-ural areas ahead of the interests ofcommercial development. Until now,this stewardship-based principle has

protected our public lands from theunremitting march of sprawling devel-opment.

The clear-cutting of the forests atWachusett Mountain State Reserva-tion took less than a week. The effects,however, will be felt for decades. Therelentless campaign by the adminis-tration and a private ski corporationto destroy the heart of an irreplace-able natural resource has unfortunatelyestablished a new ideology: profitbefore parks.

A silver liningThe administration, the legislature,and the state’s highest court have eachin turn failed to prevent the clear-cut-ting of Wachusett’s great forests. Ifthere is any silver lining in this darkcloud, it is that the conflict has raisedawareness of a growing nationwidetrend: the privatization and commer-cialization of our public lands. Sadly,this will be the legacy the Crowleyfamily, former Department of Envi-ronmental Management Commis-sioner Peter Webber, and former Exec-utive Office of Environmental AffairsSecretary Robert Durand leave, sinceeach of them played an active role inabandoning Massachusetts’s tradition


For more than one hundred years,the Sierra Club has fought nation-

wide to protect and preserve our pub-lic lands so that future generationscan enjoy them. In Massachusetts thefront line of this battle has been wagedfor nearly a decade at WachusettMountain State Reservation, a publiclyowned parkland in Princeton andWestminster. On July 14, 2003, theMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court(SJC) overturned a previous decisionto prevent a private ski area develop-er from clearcutting 12.5 acres of thepark to expand its $10-million-a yearcommercial operation.

A balance of conservation andrecreation?The latest SJC ruling puts the interestsof intensive development-dependentrecreation over that of passive recre-ation and conservation. By overturningthe previous ruling, the SJC sanctionsthe destruction of our irreplaceablepublic parklands by private ventures,and threatens the environmental pro-tections and public lands stewardshipof the Commonwealth.

Profit Before Parks: State’s highest court approves clearcutting of state park for private developerBy James McCaffrey


The clear-cutting of the forests atWachusett Mountain State Reservationtook less than a week. The effects,however, will be felt for decades.

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View of Mount Wachusett fromsummit of Mount Watatic.


In June of 2001, Acting GovernorJane Swift stopped a Greylock Glen

project that would have included agolf course and resort hotel/confer-ence center. Swift announced that stateeconomic development efforts wouldinstead be directed by the Massachu-setts Development Finance Agency(MassDevelopment) and would befocused on downtown Adams. How-ever, the future of the Glen was notdetermined at that time.

Recently, MassDevelopment andthe Department of EnvironmentalManagement (DEM), the agency originally authorized to develop theland in the Glen, decided what to do—or at least where to start. Their cur-rent proposal is for an environmentaleducation center “which may alsoaccommodate associated conferencecenter functions” on about 20 acresat the edge of the Glen parcel nearestthe center of town. This project woulduse the $2 million that the state claimsremains in the funds originally authorized for the project during themid-80s (Chapter 676). The proposalalso includes plans for trails throughthe Glen.

The proposed environmental cen-ter was put out to bid in the spring.The project includes significant pub-lic subsidies, including use of the landfrom DEM, tax-exempt bonds fromMassDevelopment, and a grant fromthe Massachusetts Technology Col-laborative for “green technologies” inthe building and on the site.

In late August, MassDevelopmentturned down all the proposals, askingfor more details. As of this writing, wedo not know what happens next.

Environmentalists concerned aboutthe Glen have been following thisprocess carefully. While people differabout whether an environmental education center should be built onthe Glen, everyone is concerned thatthere will be more proposals for devel-opment on the rest of the Glen in thefuture. Town officials and pro-devel-

opment people continue to push formore, including a golf course.

What you can doSince the state has moved the projectfrom DEM to MassDevelopment, theprocess for making decisions hasbecome completely unclear. The rulesfor DEM were known; with MassDe-velopment it often seems as if thereare no rules, at least as far as publichearings, etc., are concerned. Thatmakes it difficult for environmental-

Greylock Glen, RevisitedBy Elisa Campbell

ists to describe the situation to the citizens of the Commonwealth whohave frequently demonstrated love forMount Greylock. No one fighting forthe mountain and its protection hasgiven up, and we won’t. New peoplehave joined us. If you want to knowmore, or to help, contact Elisa Camp-bell at [email protected]. ❖

Elisa Campbell is a member of the Massa-chusetts Chapter Executive Committeeand chair of the Pioneer Valley Group.

PHILIP SAUNDERS ASSOCIATES

Economic and Financial Analysis

Business Valuation Litigation Support

www.philipsaunders.com

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Looking north along Greylock Glen in the spring.


The reasons for reducing our nation’s excessiveappetite for gasoline are many: global warming,

local air pollution, foreign policy, and the simple eco-nomics of spending so much of our money on gas.In fact, in The Consumer’s Guide to Effective Environ-mental Choices, the Union of Concerned Scientistsputs the use of cars and light trucks at the top of itslist of “most harmful consumer activities.” In its cam-paign to reduce our consumption of gasoline and oil,the Sierra Club continues to encourage Ford MotorCorporation to offer cleaner, more fuel-efficient vehicles throughout its fleet. The Club’s Campaign forResponsible Automakers has targeted Ford primarilybecause of promises made by Ford CEO and self-pro-claimed environmentalist, William Clay Ford, Jr. This is no time to let Ford off the hook; the companyannounced in April that it was breaking Mr. Ford’spromise to make a 25 percent improvement in thefuel economy of its SUVs by 2005.

The Campaign for Responsible Automakerspromotes the adoption of existing technology thathas been proven to be effective at improving fueleconomy without dramatically increasing cost. Whilegas-electric hybrids and even fuel-cell vehicles offergreat promise for the future, innovations such as con-tinuously variable transmissions, variable-valve-controlengines and idle-off starter-generators are availabletoday and can be implemented to improve the fueleconomy of any vehicle, from the smallest commutercar to the largest SUV.

In other developments, this past summer the Sier-ra Club announced that former Sierra Club PresidentDr. Robert Cox will run for Ford’s board of directorsin order to improve the company’s environmentalrecord. At the same time the Club released an adquestioning Ford’s commitment to innovation. Thead, which ran in the New York Times and BusinessWeek, pointed out that the gas mileage of the ModelT, Ford’s first car (25 miles-per-gallon), is better thanthe average gas mileage of Ford vehicles today.

Earlier this spring, on April 2, Massachusetts supporters of the Campaign for Responsible Auto-makers joined supporters in other US cities in aNational Day of Action, flooding the top executivesof Ford Motor Corporation with about 15,000 calls

and 4,000 emails saying customers expect anddeserve vehicles that use today’s technology to gofarther on a gallon of gas. Local supporters tookadvantage of another opportunity to encourage theauto giant to do the right thing when the Massa-chusetts Chapter of the Sierra Club hosted a table atEarth Fest in Boston on April 26th. Despite heavyrain, volunteers collected over 300 signed post cardsto be delivered to the Ford Corporation.

What you can doDrive responsibly, use alternative modes of transpor-tation whenever feasible, and buy responsibly. Mostimportantly, tell your friends and associates whatyou’re doing and why. For more information aboutthe campaign, including whom to contact if you’dlike to get involved, go to http://www.sierraclubmass.org/greencars.html. For more details on the campaign’s“Freedom Package” of fuel saving technologies,please go to www.sierraclub.org/freedompackage. ❖

Chris Hallgren is chair of the Massachusetts ChapterCampaign for Responsible Automakers.

Campaign for Responsible Automakers: Still Going StrongBy Chris Hallgren


The Endangered Species Act (ESA)and the Marine Mammal Protec-

tion Act (MMPA) are among the mostbeloved and effective of environmentalregulations. With the aid of these actswe’ve watched the bald eagle comeback and have worked to protect ourown Northern Right Whale.

This spring, in another demon-stration of Bush’s shameful disregardfor the environment, these two regu-lations were severely challenged. TheDepartment of Defense (DoD) has pro-posed a Defense Readiness Act thatexempts the DoD from a great num-ber of environmental regulations,including the ESA and MMPA. Themilitary manages over 25 million acresof land—land that often houses endan-gered species. But the military’s recordon environmental protection is poor.Many in Massachusetts remember theMassachusetts Military Reservationfiasco, when the military did not cleanup major toxic plumes that were goingto pollute drinking water on Cape Cod.

There is also no evidence that theseexemptions are necessary. Althoughthe ESA currently provides for someexemptions in the name of militaryreadiness, the military has never appliedfor any. Now the DoD wants us tobelieve that without further exemp-tions we will destroy our military. In

reality, everyone from former EPAAdministrator Christie Todd Whitmanto DoD Undersecretary Paul Wolfowitzhas asserted that there is no proof thatour military is less ready because ofenvironmental regulations.

Here’s how the Defense ReadinessAct looks:

In the HouseThe House Rules Committee, in chargeof this bill, decided that if the mili-tary should receive exemptions, thenso should everyone else. The HouseRules Committee attempted to extendthe exemption to all other federalagencies and even some private cor-porations. Luckily, an amendmentpassed that confined the exemptionto the DoD.

Some key changes in the House ver-sion include a weakening of the def-inition of harassment, or what the ESAconsiders harmful to endangeredspecies. Currently the definition is

The Gutting of the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal

Protection Actby Megan Admundson

fairly comprehensive, and includesany modification of habitat or behav-ior of endangered species that couldaffect the species’ ability to rebound.The House version of the MMPA alsomakes marine mammal “small takes”limitless for everyone, not just theDoD. It further allows the Secretaryof Defense to exempt the ESA orMMPA at any time in the name ofreadiness.

In the SenateThe Senate’s bill is much better thanthe House’s, although it still affectsthe ESA and MMPA. According to thisversion, military lands would beexempt from critical-habitat designa-tions. Instead, under the Sikes Act, theSecretary of Defense will work withthe Secretary of the Interior to devel-op an integrated management planfor military lands that protects andrehabilitates wildlife, fish, and game.Although this is far less damaging thanthe House version, plans developedwith the input of the Secretary ofDefense are likely to be less protectiveof natural resources than they wouldbe under current environmental reg-ulations.

The Defense Readiness Actremained in conference committeethrough the summer and is expectedto be addressed this fall. While rumorsabound of the House re-entering manyof the provisions it passed that theSenate did not, there is still time tocontact your Congressmen to save theESA and the MMPA. ❖

Megan Admundson has held a numberof volunteer posts in the MassachusettsSierra Club, including chair of the North-ern Right Whale Campaign. She is cur-rently on the GBG Executive Committee.

Sierra Club MerchandiseCanvas Backpack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $15.00100% cotton “Sierra Club Member” Cap. . . . . . . . . $ 8.00Canvas Tote / Grocery Bag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 3.00

Shipping charges: $5.00 shipping for first item, $1.00 each additional item.

All sales: Deduct 10 percent member discount (include member number), include 5 percent MA sales tax, plus shipping and handling noted above unless rush orders or multiple heavy items (contact the office for information). We apologize that we cannot accept credit card payments.

Please mail to: Sierra Club Merchandise • 100 Boylston StreetBoston, MA 02116


Jet skis are the bane of existence formany a beach lover. But beyond the

grating noise, what impact do theyhave on our communities?

Quite a bit, as it turns out. Jet skisthreaten wildlife. They pollute our airand our water. And they are funda-mentally unsafe.

Threat to wildlifeFish and wildlife biologists have foundthat jet skis routinely disrupt the livesof marine mammals like dolphins,seals, humpback whales, and mana-tees, as well as nesting waterfowl.Because they do not emit a low-fre-quency sound that can travel long dis-tances, jet skis do not alert surfacingbirds or mammals (including humans)of their approach until it’s too late.Because they can get into areas inac-cessible to conventional motorboats,jet skis can disturb sensitive aquatichabitats.

Jet skis also create excessive turbu-lence or “brown-outs,” which blocklight, deplete oxygen in the water, andharm both fish and birds. Jet skis havebeen outlawed on Lake Tahoe, one ofthe deepest lakes in the world, wherethey contributed to the decline ofwater clarity.

Air pollutionJet skis emit toxic chemicals into ourair and water: benzene (a Class A car-cinogen), methyl tertiary-butyl ether(MTBE has been found to cause cancerin lab animals), and toluene (which

affects the nervous system). Accord-ing to the Northeast States for Coor-dinated Air Use Management Office,outdoor concentrations of benzene,1-3, butadiene, acetaldehyde, andformaldehyde in the northeast regionalready exceed established health pro-tective guidelines by several orders ofmagnitude.

As is well known, air pollution con-tributes to a variety of health prob-lems. In Massachusetts, more than750,000 people suffer from heart orlung ailments that are seriously aggra-vated by air pollution.

Water pollutionSeveral cases of MTBE contaminationhave been directly linked to jet ski use.For example, MTBE was measured at88 parts per billion after jet ski eventson Lake Shasta.

Even at extremely low concentra-tions, the noxious taste and odor ofMTBE can render water undrinkable.Once MTBE gets into the water, it isextremely difficult and costly to get itout because it is resistant to traditionalmethods used to remove other hydro-carbon contamination from water sup-plies. The South Lake Tahoe utility district has already spent $9 millionto clean up MTBE contamination andestimates that it will cost $45 millionmore to remove MTBE from the town’swater supply.

Although the jet ski industry hasdeveloped cleaner, four-stroke engines,the vast majority of the 7,000 jet skis

currently registered inMassachusetts have two-stroke engines. In two-stroke engines, theintake and exhaustvalves are open at thesame time, so excessiveunburned fuel poursstraight out of the vehi-cle before it can be com-busted. Such enginescan dump up to fourgallons of unburned oiland gas directly into thewater in just two hours.

Even the new two-stroke direct-injec-tion engines emit four times greateremissions than four-stroke engines withequivalent horsepower, according tothe California Air Resources Board.

Noise pollutionWhat is it about jet ski noise that putspeople on edge? The Noise PollutionClearinghouse explains: “Jet ski noiseis different than that of conventionalmotorboats because of constant fluctu-ations in pitch. Rapidly varying noiseis much more disturbing than constantnoise, as decades of psycho-acousticresearch has established.”

Safety concernsJet skis are different from traditionalmotorboats because they are propelledby forcing water through the vessel(jet propulsion). Due to this design,most jet skis cannot stop or reactquickly to avoid obstacles. If the riderreleases the throttle or experiences apower failure, he will not be able toavoid a collision.

Researchers from the University ofMichigan have warned that jet skis“present several safety hazards result-ing from their ability to attain highspeeds while having only limited [stop-ping] capabilities.” This problem isexacerbated in newer jet skis that haveeven greater horsepower. Sea Doo nowoffers models with 215 horsepower—more power than many cars on theroad today.

Earlier this year, vice-chairman ofthe National Transportation SafetyBoard Mark Rosenker expressed frus-tration that five years after the boardreleased a safety study recommend-ing the adoption of improved designand controllability standards for jetskis, there are still no comprehensivesafety standards for jet skis.

So beware: next time you see a jetski approaching, that jarring noise isn’tall it’s leaving in its wake.

What you can doFor further information or to receiveaction alerts on this issue, please con-tact Leslie Doyle at 508-435-0275 or [email protected]. ❖

Leslie Doyle is a freelance writer and chairof the Massachusetts Chapter LegislativeCommitttee.

JET SKIS: Economic, Public Health, and Wildlife ImpactsBy Leslie Doyle

Jet skier on the Charles River, Boston.

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surviving Siriono could not possiblyoverexploit the resources of an envi-ronment that had once supportedmany times their number. And there

are groups like the Warrau of Venezuela,studied when they hadjust been given steelaxes and other metaltools that made it pos-sible to easily fashiondugout fishing canoesand chop down palmtrees to get at thenourishing pith. Steelmade it possible forthe Warrau to live inunprecedented plenty.

In other words,when people suddenlylive in great plenty,either because they areable to exploit resourcesin new ways or because

some catastrophe has left only a fewsurvivors in a lush ecosystem, theymay indeed live in peace and withoutdegrading their environment.

As for a group that lives in peaceand plenty because it has carefullypreserved the local ecosystem and/orsuccessfully kept population growthbelow zero so that the ecosystemwould be able to sustain the group in

Reviewed by Diana Muir

Anthropologists have carefully examined the lives of hunter/

gatherers and farmers living in non-complex societies and determined thatthese people, both the few such groupsthat survived into the twentieth cen-tury and the many who lived in thelong period of human history knownonly from archaeology, were unlikeus in three important ways.

First, neither hunter/gatherers norpre-state farmers engaged in warfare.War emerged with civilization, firstintroduced to the world by the earlyMesopotamians who gave us writing,the wheel, and so much more. Earlierpeoples may have had feuding or bat-tle-as-ritual, but not actual wars inwhich soldiers aim to kill a lot of theenemy.

Second, these non-complex soci-eties lived in harmony with nature.Unlike ‘civilized’ peoples from Baby-lonia onward, who have deforestedhills, silted up estuaries, and drivennumerous species to extinction, peo-ple in simpler societies lived in har-mony with nature, often taking greatcare not to upset the balance of speciesand resources. They were the originalecologists.

Third, the people whose lifewaysare the simplest and most natural ofall—the world’s hunter/gatherers—arethe best able to achieve harmony withnature since they have developed waysto keep population growth withinsustainable levels. They achieved thisby nursing infants for three or fouryears, which leads to such a long nat-ural spacing of births that zero growthis achieved.

Archaeologist Steven LeBlanc, cura-tor of collections at the Peabody Muse-um of Archaeology and Ethnology atHarvard, has written Constant Battles toinform us that it ain’t necessarily so.

Despite endorsement of the threeprinciples outlined above by virtual-ly every anthropology professor nowpublishing, the effort to produce a sin-gle example of asociety that eschewswar, lives in har-mony with nature,and has achievedzero populationgrowth has born little fruit. Of thecultures known toarchaeology andethnology—andthere are well over1,000—only abouta dozen have beendescribed as actual-ly achieving evenone of the threehallmarks imputedto all pre-state soci-eties.

LeBlanc examines this very brieflist and finds that they all fall into oneof a few categories. There are groupslike the Hutterites, undoubtedly paci-fist, but only able to be so because theylive entirely within a nation state thattakes care of defense. There are groupslike the Siriono of Amazonia, studiedby anthropologists in the 1940s whenintroduced diseases had so decimat-ed their numbers that the handful of


BOOK REVIEW:

Constant Battles The Myth of the Peaceful,Noble Savage

By Steven LeBlanc with Katherine RegisterSt. Martin’s Press, $25.95, 230 pp.


BOOK BRIEF:

Everything You Wanted to Know about Vermicomposting . . .

Compost By Gosh!Written and illustrated by Michelle Eva PortmanFlower Press, 42 pp., $16.95

Reviewed by Roberta Tovey

Not for the squeamish, Michelle Eva Portman’s new children’s book will do much to encourage kids of all ages to play in the dirt. Portman tells it like it is when worms meet garbage:

“While writhing and wriggling,On food scraps they dined.Now waste turned to goldHas come out their behind.”

Cleverly illustrated with photographs overlaid with drawings, this bookpacks in enough down-to-earth information to start you and your chil-dren on your own composting adventure at home. ❖


boards actually deny permits for beachnourishment, dock construction, sea-wall rebuilding and other things. Thatday is yet to come.”

The CRWG hopes that with thecooperation of the many town boards,committees and commissions thatoversee the coastal zone, some of therecommendations will come to passsooner than later. Given time, Fal-mouth’s shoreline will no longer needmanagement and people will buildfarther from the shore. Nobody expectsFalmouth to become a pristine coastalwilderness again, but the hope is tomake the coastline self-sustaining, asit once was.

What you can doFor more information about the prob-lems of coastal armoring on the Capeand elsewhere, check out “Against theTide: The Battle for America’s Beaches”by Cornelia Dean. ❖

Alexandra Dohan lives in Lexington,Massachusetts, and has had a lifelonginterest in all things maritime.

The CRWG recommends the pro-hibition of new coastal armoring struc-tures. Existing structures should bereconstructed or repaired “where theunderlying landform is a sedimentsource, a coastal beach, coastal dune,eroding coastal bank or other dynam-ic coastal landform.” Funding fromstate and federal sources may berequired to study various beach nour-ishment experiments in the processof “softening” the coastline and toacquire land. To get all this started,the report urges the formation of a“Town Coastal Management Com-mittee” to “review proposed coastalprojects, coordinate coastal activitiesand to inform the public concerningcoastal processes.”

Wilber and the CRWG hope thatFalmouth will be a model for futurecoastal management all around thenation. According to Chris Neill, chairof the Massachusetts Sierra Club’s CapeCod Group, the CRWG proposal “putsFalmouth out in front of most of therest of the country.” The challenge,Neill says, will be “to have the town

Restoring the Cape Cod Shoreline(continued from page 5)

comfort going forward, LeBlanc assertsthat none exists.

I have recently spent an extendedperiod in Tozzer Library researching abook intended to portray those humangroups that have maintained zero pop-ulation growth and achieved a sus-tainable balance with their environ-ment. I did, of course, understand thatI would have to mention some groupsonly in passing since space would obvi-ously permit going into detail withregard to only a few of the more inter-esting ecologically sustainable cultures.In the end, I did not have to leave outa single instance of humans living inbalance with nature because I couldnot find a single society that met thecriteria. This was true even though Iwas not requiring that these societiesbe pacific, merely that their environ-mental adaptation be sustainable.

Every human group tends to growover time. According to LeBlanc’s com-pellingly written account of the humanstory, this incessant growth has alwaysmeant that societies sooner or lateroutgrow their resource base. At thatpoint they set out to expropriate some-one else’s resource base, whether withstone-tipped spears, bronze battle-axes,or Black Hawk helicopters.

LeBlanc’s depictions of hunter/gatherers are especially chilling. Hedescribes women digging up an entirepatch of wild tubers, then selectingonly the large ones as worth the trou-ble of carrying back to camp. Therejected tubers are left on the groundto wither, a digging method that pre-cludes a future harvest from that patch.And when hunter/gatherers fight, theyaim to kill. The purpose of warfare ina world of hunter/gatherers, after all, isto eliminate competition for resources.

LeBlanc carries the reader along bythe force of his argument. He sets outto persuade us that “the warfare andecological destruction we find todayfit into patterns of human behaviorthat have gone on for millions ofyears.” And he succeeds. ❖

Diana Muir, a regular contributor to theSierran, is working on a new book on therole of overpopulation in history.

Constant Battles(continued from page 11)

of preserving our cultural, historicaland environmental resources for thebenefit of all citizens.

The future of our state forests and parksIn the next 20 to 30 years, Massachu-setts will reach its full build-out fordevelopable land. The loss of maturenorthern red oak forests at Wachusettis a tragedy, but there are even largerissues at stake. Massachusetts loses 44acres of open space every day to pri-vate development. Some of this occurs,as it did at Wachusett, on public park-land. At the municipal level, 20 per-cent of all park-takings are for privateor residential use.

How we treat the few places afford-ed protection today will determine thequality of life for future generations,and dictate who will choose to live,work, and visit this great Common-

Profits Before Parks(continued from page 6)

wealth. We must work to change theattitude that puts profit before preser-vation, lest the public lose faith in thestate’s ability to be a trustworthy stew-ard. Some privatization of state facil-ities (e.g. rinks and pools) may beappropriate, but not without limits orthe need to adhere to existing lawsthat protect these lands.

The Sierra Club has already begunactively working with environmentalleaders in the legislature to identifyand correct the regulatory and leg-islative flaws that allowed the deci-mation of our state park at the handsof a private developer. We look forwardto working with our members through-out the Commonwealth to ensure thatsuch tragedies never again occur in ourstate forests and parks. ❖

James McCaffrey is director of the Massachusetts Sierra Club.

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* The participation of Sierra Club representatives in the development of this product does not constitute an endorsement. The Sierra Club has a policy of not endorsing any products.


YES! I want to save America’swild lands and wildlife before ourchance to do so disappears forever!

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MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIESINDIVIDUAL JOINT

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The Massachusetts Chapter and Borders Books are co-sponsoringauthor Jeffrey M. Smith in a discussion about his book, Seeds of

Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies About the Safety ofGenetically Engineered Foods You’re Eating, on Wednesday, October 8 at 12:30 PM at Border’s Books (10–24 School Street, Downtown Crossing, Boston).

Mr. Smith has nearly a decade’s experience working for non-profitsand political groups in the field of genetically modified foods. From Iowa,Mr. Smith serves on the Sierra Club Genetic Engineering Committee.

Seeds of Deception shows that industry influence and political collusion—not sound science—allow dangerous genetically modifiedfoods on the market. For more information on the book, go toseedsofdeception.com. ❖

Help Prepare aMassachusetts Wildlife Plan! Here is an opportunity for volunteersto influence our state’s wildlife policy.

Congress requires all the states toprepare a Comprehensive Wildlife Plan as a condition for obtaining sometypes of federal funding. The plansmust be completed by October 2005.The Sierra Club has asked state chap-ters to work with the responsible stateagency; in Massachusetts, this is theDivision of Fisheries and Wildlife.

The Massachusetts Chapter plansto establish a Wildlife Committee towork on this project and other wildlifeissues.

Interested? Please contact the chapteroffice: (617) 423-5775, [email protected] or the Chapter ConservationChair, Gil Woolley: (617) 965-6247,[email protected].

GBG News

The Greater Boston Group (GBG) ismoving to address inadequacies in theCity of Boston recycling program. Atpresent the city does not pick up recy-cling from buildings that have beenclassified as rooming houses. Such adesignation includes college fraterni-ties and sororities.

Several members of the GBG exec-utive committee are taking a personalinterest in correcting this apparentinequity and will be meeting with thecity’s trash enforcement and licensingpersonnel.

Another area of interest is the proposed development plans for landadjacent to the Metropolitan DistrictCommission’s Alewife reservation.Not only is the reservation home to awide variety of wildlife, includingbeavers, fish, and numerous birdspecies, it also features an array of habi-tats including marshes, forests, mead-ows, and a river. While the develop-ment proposals still remain in flux,the GBG is monitoring the situationclosely and looking particularly close-ly at potential traffic congestion aswell as storm water runoff.

The GBG continues to spearheadseveral urban transportation issues:advocating for the North/South RailLink, which would connect North andSouth Stations; pressing for a light railsolution for the Silver Line; and close-ly monitoring the restoration of theArborway light rail line to JamaicaPlain. ❖

Daily Transportation/Sprawl News Updates

Transportation and sprawl happen everyday, and so do news articles coveringthem. Jeremy Marin, Conservation Orga-nizer from the Boston office, puts out adaily email listing the title and a link toall of the day’s transportation and sprawlstories from around Massachusetts.

If you would like to join the list ofpeople receiving the daily updates, drop Jeremy an email at [email protected].

Newsletter Editor Experienced editor needed to takeover editing and production oversightof the Massachusetts Sierran beginningJanuary 2004. This volunteer positioninvolves working with editorial boardto establish newsletter direction;assigning, editing and writing articles;and setting and maintaining deadlinesand production schedules. Pleaseapply to [email protected].


CAPE COD GROUP EXECUTIVECOMMITTEE November 13Time: 7:00 PM – 9:00 PMPlace: Falmouth Unitarian

Meeting House, 840 Sandwich Road, Falmouth

Take Route 6 to Mashpee Rotary. From rotary,take Route 151 west toward Falmouth. Afterabout three miles, turn left at a stop light, ontoSandwich Road. The meetinghouse is wellmarked, about two miles on the right.

MASSACHUSETTS CHAPTEREXECUTIVE COMMITTEE November 15Time: 10:00 AM – 2:30 PMPlace: Sierra Club office The Sierra Club office is located at 100 Boylston Street, Suite 760, Boston.

Massachusetts Chapter and Group Meetings

MASSACHUSETTS CHAPTERCONSERVATION COMMITTEEOctober 18Time: 10:00 AM – 2:00 PMPlace: Sierra Club office December 13Time: 10:00 AM – 2:00 PMPlace: Sierra Club office

NORTH/SOUTH RAIL LINKCOMMITTEE October 21Place: Sierra Club officeThis committee meets on the thirdTuesday of every other month to discuss and strategize progress onthe Rail Link, extending the North-east Corridor national passenger railservice from South Station to NorthStation, New Hampshire, Maineand beyond, as well as connectingthe commuter rail systems fromRhode Island to New Hampshire. Allmembers are welcome to attend, tolearn, and to participate.Contact Louise Lewis, Chair: 617-266-5890 or [email protected].

SIERRAN EDITORIAL BOARD October 9Time: 6:30 PMPlace: Sierra Club office

COASTAL MARINE HABITAT AND WILDLIFE COMMITTEEFORMINGThis committee will work on: fisheries management, NorthernRight Whale conservation, federallegislation to lease or license theocean’s bottom, Stellwagen BankMarine Sanctuary Management Plan, coastal armoring, and the US Commission on Ocean Policy.Please contact Mary Ann Nelson,Chapter Chair, for more information:[email protected].

OUTINGS COMMITTEEOutings need leaders! If you have afavorite hike or other activity thatyou would like to lead, please con-tact Deborah Holt, Outings Chair,at [email protected].

(continued on back page)

Conservation and IssueCommittee Meetings

All meeting times may change without notice. Please consult Web site for updates (www.sierraclubmass.org).

SIERRA CLUB ACTIVIST NETWORKWould you like to stay up-to-date on environmental legislation impactingMassachusetts? Sign up today for the Sierra Club Activist Network! To join, send a BLANK message to [email protected]. Make the subject of yourmessage SUBSCRIBE.

SCAN is an “announce only” list with very low traffic (usually less than twomessages per month). We will never share your name or e-mail address with any outside entity.

M A S S A C H U S E T T S�IERRANReaching More Than

26,000 Sierra Club Members in Massachusetts

Massachusetts ChapterSierra Club100 Boylston Street, Suite 760Boston, MA 02116 617-423-5775

[email protected]

wPrinted with soy-based ink on recycled paper

Postmaster: Send all address changes (PS form 3579) to: Sierra Club Membership, 85 Second Street, 2nd FloorSan Francisco, CA 94105

CHAPTER/GROUPTRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE If you are interested in transporta-tion issues and want to find outwhat the chapter is doing aboutseveral critical issues, please con-tact John Deacon, TransportationChair: [email protected].

LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEWANTS MEMBERSWould you like to help support key environmental issues? The new Chapter Legislative Committeeis looking for members to helpplan and implement the SierraClub’s legislative priorities in theState House. To join the committee contactLeslie Doyle at [email protected] 508-435-0275.

The Sierra Club office is located at 100 Boylston Street, Suite 760, Boston.

All meeting times may change without notice.

Please consult Web site for updates (www.sierraclubmass.org).

Committee Meetings (continued)

LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR

Testimony from the public is welcomeat the following hearings before theJoint Committee on Natural Resourcesand Agriculture:

October 16 Senate Bill 1259: An Act to Improvethe Supply and Delivery of Water toMassachusetts Water ResourcesAuthority Ratepayers.November 14House Bill 1161: An Act to Promotethe Use of Integrated PestManagement Techniques.

All hearing are held at 10:00 AM at the State House, Room A2.Please keep your comments brief (two-three minutes). You are welcome to supplement your testimony with written material.

AD SALES OPPORTUNITY

The Massachusetts Sierran is lookingfor a self-starter to sell advertisingfor this high demographic 26,000circulation quarterly. Generouscommission structure. Work fromhome. Send resume to JamesMcCaffrey at [email protected] by regular mail at the chapteroffice. No phone calls please.

reaching more than ierran · 2015-11-23 · volume 9 • number 3 fall 2003 massachusettsierran...

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